About Co-Op Tech

The School of Cooperative Technical Education has served a diverse population of students since its inception in the Fall of 1984. It was designed to provide a Career & Technical Education sequence option to students who had belatedly realized their interest after having missed their opportunity to apply to the traditional Career & Technical Education High Schools. The target student profile is an eleventh grader, 16 years of age, career or college bound upon graduation two years down the road. These students would pursue one of two modalities, Co-op or BOCES.

Today over 1500 students from over 100 high schools and GED programs throughout New York City attend our Career & Technical Education Courses. We also serve over 200 students between the age of 17 and 20 who have already obtained their high school diploma or GED.

BOCES

In the BOCES model students travel directly to our school from home at 8:30am, attend class for three periods (2 hours & 30minutes) and are then bused to their 'home' school where they receive instruction in their academic courses. A second group of students attend their 'home' school first and report to Co-op Tech at 12:30pm for the afternoon. In the early years of our school most courses were intended to span two years of triple period instruction. Courses ranged as they do today but were skewed more heavily towards traditional manual skilled disciplines such as machine tool metal working. Today our course catalogue lists 19 different programs spanning the alphabet from A+ Computer Repair to Welding. There has been a trend towards the infusion of electronic technologies as represented by the proliferation of Microsoft Office Specialist and Computer Repair course offerings. Another trend, begun recently, calls for programs to be designed around a modular curriculum that can be accomplished in a single year. Students who cannot devote two years to a comprehensive sequence can, in this way achieve some form of a saleable skill. Students who can devote two or more years can take our Cosmetology program(2½ years) or the Culinary Arts program(2 years) so as to enhance their employability.

Co-op

Our Co-op model is conducted outside of our building at various locations. Each site is staffed by a teacher and paraprofessional. They are administered and supervised from the main building. The students participate in the Department of Education's Alternate Week Cooperative Education program. Here students are paid minimum wage under Project LEARN to attend a five hour production class in Carpentry or Electrical Installation for one week. The following week an entirely different class of students would take their place while the first class attends a full week of whole day academic courses at the students’ 'home' schools. (to enroll in this program a student must attend a high school or high school program that conducts an alternate week Co-op program of academic instruction – you may consult the High School directory or www.nycenet.edu to determine schools that are eligible) Our Co-op component comprises roughly one tenth of our overall enrollment.

Adult Education

Co-op Tech conducts an evening program on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 4pm until 8pm exclusively for adults in sixteen of our program disciplines. To be eligible adults must live in the City of New York and be without a high school diploma.

Non-Discrimination Policy

It is the policy of the City of New York Department of Education not to discriminate on the basis of race, color, creed, religion, national origin, age, disability, marital status, sexual orientation, or sex, in its educational programs, activities and employment policies and to maintain an environment free of sexual harassment, as required by law. Any person who believes he or she has been discriminated against should contact: Rachael Lazarus, Title IX compliance officer, School of Cooperative Technical Education, 321 East 96th St., NYC, NY 10128. Inquiries regarding compliance with appropriate laws may be directed to: Director, Office of Equal opportunity, 65 Court Street, Room 923, Brooklyn, New York 11201 Telephone (718) 935-3320.